War & Destiny

by Kitfield, James

• ISBN13: 9781574889598
• ISBN10: 1574889591
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-06-01
• Publisher: Univ of Nebraska Pr

Summary

Throughout time, major wars have defined historical epochs and charted the rise and decline of great powers. The U.S. global "war on terror," with Iraq as the Bush administration's chosen centerpiece, is almost certainly destined to do the same. Indeed, the Bush doctrine for conducting the war on terror and the Iraqi Freedom campaign are likely to prove benchmarks in U.S. history precisely because of the many orthodoxies and traditions the administration has purposely challenged. At the same time, fundamental flaws have already appeared in many tenets underlying the Bush transformation of foreign and military affairs. So contends award-winning journalist James Kitfield. As with his critically acclaimed Prodigal Soldiers, the story of how America arrived at this fateful crossroads is a narrative full of drama and personal anecdote, rich in context and detail. War and Destinyis based on interviews with the key players and on Kitfield's personal observation of major events. Like his first book, it may well become the chronicle of a critical period in American history.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	ix
Prologue	xi
Part I Revolution
1 Atlas Shakes	3	(17)
2 Three-Dimensional Chess	20	(13)
3 A Darker Prism	33	(18)
Part II Cataclysm
4 Assassins at the Gate	51	(15)
5 A Fork in the Road	66	(14)
6 A Familiar Nemesis	80	(16)
7 Pox Americana	96	(11)
8 A Perfect Storm	107	(18)
Part III War
9 Fear City	125	(8)
10 Eve of Destruction	133	(17)
11 American Centurions	150	(10)
12 March Madness	160	(16)
13 Gates of Babylon	176	(8)
14 The Enemy Votes	184	(10)
15 Fuel Masters, Water Dogs, and Gorilla Snot	194	(6)
16 Baghdad Calling	200	(6)
17 Brothers in Arms	206	(10)
18 Iraq and a Hard Place	216	(19)
19 Homecoming	235	(8)
Part IV Blowback
20 Transplanting Democracy	243	(17)
21 The Ramadan Offensive	260	(8)
22 Transformation and Revolt	268	(23)
23 Nation Building in a Time of Terror	291	(22)
24 Razor's Edge	313	(13)
25 Clouds in the West	326	(21)
26 Twilight Warriors	347	(12)
Notes	359	(14)
Index	373	(13)
The Author	386